


Dark Side of the Lab

by galaxylights



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Engineering 101, Engineering Major! Rey, F/M, How Do I Tag, Inappropriate Use of the Force, Libraries, Research labs, Rey is one determined student, Slow Burn, Unresolved Sexual Tension, shy Ben
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-31
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2019-05-16 08:27:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14807838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galaxylights/pseuds/galaxylights
Summary: Rey Kenobi is a new student at Jakku University, and is determined to study engineering by earning a place in Dr. Holdo's Mechanics Lab. But the night before her first day of classes, she finds herself in the library and tripping over a shy giant of a boy named Ben Solo, who becomes her biggest rival for the top spots in her STEM classes. Rey wants to hate him, but she can't seem to stay away from Ben's broken past.





	Dark Side of the Lab

Rey had no idea what she was doing. That is to say, it was the night before her first day of college, and she found herself navigating the library instead of going out with her very insistent roommate, Jessika. She could have been in her room, but she already spent enough time in there sleeping. Rey thought sleep was a waste of time honestly. Especially when you’re an engineering major. 

Jakku University was a big institution with a lot of students. Rey primarily picked the university for two things: The mechanical engineering program was the best in the country and they gave out yearly scholarships to the top student in each year. She needed that scholarship. 

She wove her way around the tables of the lobby to get to the stairs, climbing seven flights to get to the top floor. There weren’t many people in the library at all, considering classes had yet to begin, but the seventh floor was deserted.

Rey wandered aimlessly down isle after isle trying to scout out a place to claim as her own for the semester. She wanted natural light with lots of windows, but also an area with a big table that was shielded from view. She caught a glimpse of an area tucked away in the Western corner of the library, but had to duck behind a row of books to get there. Rey was so focused on getting to the nook, that she didn’t see the dark haired boy sitting on the floor. 

It was too late and Rey tripped over something - she wasn’t sure if it was on one of the numerous books they boy had spread around him, or the boy himself. She fell into his lap (literally). Rey was so embarrassed it took her a few seconds to actually move. Maybe it also had something to do with the fact that this was the first human contact she’d had in months, except for her RA and Jessika. Maybe. 

“Are you kidding me?!” Rey huffed as she tried to disentangle herself from the guy. He wasn’t helping much either way, seeing as how he was just staring at her, even though he’d wrapped his arms around her to break her fall. 

“You’re on my lap.” His voice sounded much more melodic and deeper than she’d pictured. 

“What were you doing, sitting on the floor?” She stood up and away from him. 

She finally got a good look at him as he stared up at her. He wasn’t handsome in the classical sense, but he wasn’t unattractive either; he had long, dark hair that brushed his broad shoulders. His nose was slightly too large, but then she noticed that all of him was slightly out of proportion; from his long arms to his towering frame to his lanky legs. And yet his skin looked soft and the small freckles and moles on his face distracted her for a second. 

She glowered. 

He blinked at her. “I was just trying to st-study before classes tomorrow…”

“On the floor?” She asked. 

He looked unsure of his answer. “Yes?” 

Rey slung her backpack farther up her shoulder. “Okay, Mr. Floor Dweller, how about you warn me next time you’re trying to trip everyone over.”

He blushed. “I wasn’t trying to trip you at all. I’m so sorry to have gotten in your way.”

If Rey had heard that from anyone else, she would have assumed that it was sarcastic. But this boy was staring at the textured carpet, tracing the designs out with his fingers in an attempt to not look her in the eyes. 

He’s shy and polite.

“Oh,” was all she could say. “I um, well, I’m Rey.” She stuck out her hand to shake. “Rey Kenobi.” 

She realized that her outstretched arm did no good since he was sitting on the floor. After a pause, he uncurled himself from his position and awkwardly got to his feet. It was only then that Rey realized how tall he was. 

His cheeks were still fairly pink, but he gave a tentative smile as he took her hand. “I’m Ben. Nice to meet you, Rey.”

Rey couldn’t help but notice how long his fingers were, considering his hand nearly engulfed her own. After a touch too long, Rey withdrew her hand. “Ah, well I’m gonna go study too, Ben. Bye.” 

Rey gingerly walked over his study materials and headed to her nook. It was perfect, but even as she took out her heavy engineering textbook, she couldn’t help but wonder about the shy boy who frequented library floors. 

——————————————————————

Rey couldn’t believe her luck — her alarm clock hadn’t gone off at the proper moment this morning and the coffee she’d made in a rush had spilled down the front of her white linen shirt. Not to mention she got to class exactly as it started, which made finding a seat in her 9am lecture hall nearly impossible. 

She frantically climbed the stairs, with students on the aisle seats looking up to watch her pass by as the professor began lecturing. She was half way up when she caught Ben’s warm eyes. She was already stepping over him before she realized that she was going to sit next to the boy from the library. 

She didn’t quite judge the distance properly and almost landed face first on the seat. 

Rey was so embarrassed she couldn’t help but feel her face turn red. 

“Is this going to be a habit?” Ben whispered to her. 

She turned to look at him. His tortoiseshell glasses were askew but his unsure expression that tugged at his lips was enough for her to suspect that he was secretly pleased she was next to him.

“Oh, stuff it,” she grumbled as she took out her brand new notebook, one she’d bought during the tax free weekend a while ago to make sure she got the cheapest materials she needed. She didn’t have the time or the money to be very picky. 

She turned her attention to her Intro to engineering professor, Dr. Amilyn Holdo. She was a tall, slender woman who sported a head of lilac colored hair. She seemed very soft from her appearance but Rey had watched her Ted Talk and read up on her laboratory website enough to know that Dr. Holdo was a badass of the mechanical engineering department. Her speciality was that she had no specialty — Dr. Holdo was brilliant in almost everything requiring a machine and a problem to solve. 

“Now that we’ve gone over the Syllabus,” Dr. Holdo said, “I wanted to highlight the opportunities that this University has to offer particularly dedicated and motivated STEM students. At the end of this course, depending on how well students do on the exams, quizzes, and other assignments, there will be chances for some of the top students to be placed into specific labs to help the professors and graduate students with research. I hope this motivates you,” Dr. Holdo took a pause, “Because this class is not going to be easy. And I might have a few openings in my laboratory by the beginning of next term, if people truly do impress me.” 

Murmurs from the rest of the crowded lecture hall started the way a forrest fire does: small noises and then roaring all at once. Dr. Holdo let this continue for a second, and the boy to Rey’s other side let out a nervous laugh. 

“Best of luck, everyone,” Dr. Holdo said over the noise, before pulling a stack of papers out of her bag. “The first quiz assessment begins now.” A collective groan filled the auditorium. “When you’ve finished bring the papers up to me and you can leave.” 

Rey found herself grinning, despite her warning and everyone else’s despair. She was going to make it into one of the research labs or even Dr. Holdo’s lab, and she was going to succeed in this class. She tapped her pencil on her table, glad she’d prepared for today. 

When Rey was done, she was surprised to see that she was the first to finish. She gathered her backpack and made sure to take long, confident strides up to where Dr. Holdo was sitting. Rey hoped she would be impressed with her and her work.

Dr. Holdo smiled at her and then at something over her shoulder. As she turned away from Dr. Holdo, she caught Ben’s eyes as he too stood behind her to turn the assessment. 

“I’m impressed, Ms. Kenobi and Mr. Solo,” Dr. Holdo said with a smile, after scanning their names on their assessment sheet. “I hope this bodes well for you both.” 

As she and Ben moved to leave, Rey couldn’t help but think she was talking about something other than their assessment.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic so any suggestions welcome!


End file.
